Process of applying liquid to textile materials



w. WHITEHEAD Jan. 25, 1938.

PROCESS OF APPLYING LIQUID TO TEXTILE MATERIALS Original Filed June 14 1929 INVENTOR William Whifehead %ZFr oNE-:Ys

reatly, and this variation is objectionable since Patented Jan. 25, 1938 UNITED STATES PROCESS OF APPLYING LIQUID TO TEX- TILE MATERIALS Wllliam Whitehead, Cumberland, Md., assignor to Celanese Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware Original application June 14, 1929, Serial No.

870,763. Divided tember 24,

Claims.

This invention relates to process of applying a liquid to filaments, yarns or threads while they are travelling to a winding device.

This application is a division of my application S. No. 370,763 filed June 14, 1929 and which has issued as Patent No. 2,025,079.

An object of my invention is to'supply means for applying liquids to filaments, yarns or threads in a substantially uniform manner. Other objects of my invention will appear from the following detailed description.

Often it is desirable to apply a conditioning liquid to yarn as it is passing to a winding device. The means formerly proposed for this purpose comprises a wick that dips in a bath of the liquid to be applied and over which the yarn or thread passes. However the amount of liquid that is applied to the yarn in this manner varies itcauses variation in the properties of the final product.

I have found that if the liquid is supplied to the yarn or thread in a controlled and exhaustible amount, and the yarn or thread is caused to take up such amount so as to exhaust the'supply of the same, substantially uniform application of the liquid to the yarn or thread is attained.

In accordance with my invention, I apply to filaments, yarns or threads of any suitable kind a substantially uniform amount of a liquid by causing the same to pass over a device that presents an exhaustible supply of the liquid, the rate of supply being such that the yarn or thread takes up substantially the whole of such supply.

Any suitable filaments, yarns or threads may be treated by my invention. Thus they may be in the form of artificial filaments produced by ex-' trusion of a spinning solution through orifices, or they may be in the form of yarns of associated filaments, threads, artificial bristles, straw, etc.

The filaments, yarns or threads may be made of any suitable material, such as cotton, natural silk, wool, reconstituted cellulose, etc., but a particularly important application of my invention is in the treatment of yarns or filaments made of organic derivatives of cellulose such as organic esters of cellulose or cellulose ethers. Examples of organic esters of cellulose are cellulose acetate, cellulose formate, cellulose propionate and cellulose butyrate, while examples of cellulose ethers are ethyl cellulose, methyl cellulose and benzyl cellulose. These yarns or filaments may be made by extrusion of a solution of the organic derivatives through orifices into an evaporative atmosand this application Sep- 1935, Serial No. 41,894

phere, as in dry spinning, or into a precipitating bath, as in wet spinning.

This invention is of general application and may be'employed for applying liquids of any kind to the filaments or yarns. conditioning liquid containing lubricants such as mineral oil, animal oils or vegetable oils for increasing the pliability of the yarns or threads. The fluid to be applied may be a sizing liquid containing resins, soaps, starches, glues, etc., for im-- parting strength to yarn, especially for yarns employed in making warps. The liquid may be a dyeing liquid containing a solution of a suitable dye in water, organic solvents or other liquids. Another application of this invention is for ap-= V plying a fugitive tinting fluid to the yarns or filaments to impart a color to the same for identification purposes, which color may be easily removed by washing. Another example of a fluid that may be applied is an aqueous or alcoholic: solution of sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide for saponifying organic esters of cellulose.

While any suitable device for applying the liquid in controlled and exhaustible quantities may be employed, I prefer to use a disc that is rotating in a plane at right angles to the path of the filaments or yarns. The lower edge of this disc preferably dips in a bath of the liquid to be applied, whilstfthe filaments or yarns pass over a part of the edge of the disc that is not submerged; in the liquid. In order to obtain such supplies of the liquid on the disc so that the yarn in its passage may substantially entirely exhaust the same, the disc should rotate at a relatively low rate so that the peripheral speed of the same is materially less than the linear speed of the yarns or' filaments to be treated. The size of the disc and therate of rotation of the same may be varied within wide limits, depending on the nature and the amount of the liquid to be applied. In 40 the selection of the rate of revolution and the thickness of the disc, it is to be remembered that the greater the rate of revolution and/or the greater the thicknessof the disc, the greater will be the amount of liquid applied to the yarns or filaments.

The liquid may be appl ed to the filaments, yarns or threads during their passage to a windv ing device. Thus the filaments or yarns may have the liquid applied thereto immediately after their formation in a spinning machine and in their passage to a winding and/or winding and twisting device such as a cap spinning device. If desired the liquid may be applied to the yarn during its This liquid maybe a. 5 I

' accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device wherein a disc is employed,

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic showing of my device employed for applying liquid to artificial filaments as they are leaving the spinning device.

Figure 3 shows a modified form of disc in which the periphery is continuous but .of variable thickness,

Figure 4 shows another modification of the disc wherein the periphery is interrupted, and

Figure 5 shows still another modification of the disc in which the disc is of elliptical form.

Referring to Figure 1, I indicates the disc having the edge 2 and rotating on the spindle 3. I'his spindle 3 is connected by suitable gearing to a prime mover, and since the disc I is rotatedat a relatively slow speed suitable reducing gears will be required to connect the same with the prime mover. The lower part of the disc I dips in the bath 4 containing the fluid to be applied, and this fluid is contained in the trough 5. The yarns or associated filaments 6 to be treated are caused to pass across the edge 2 of the disc I, where they take up the conditioning fluid 4 occurring thereon.

In Figure 2, l indicates the casing of a spinning machine containing the spinneret II which extrudes the filaments l2 that pass around the guide roller l3. As the filaments I! leave the spinning cabinet I0, they pass over the edge of the disc -I which supplies a lubricant contained in the trough 5, and the associated filaments 6 pass over the roller H to the cap spinning device l where they are wound and twisted.

As an illustration of a mode of employing my invention, the following. is given. The disc i having a diameter of 2" and a thickness of M is rotated at the rate of 1.2 revolutions per minute, and the yarn 6 formed in the spinning machine is caused to pass over the edge of the disc at the rate of 100 meters per minute. The amount of conditioning fluid taken up by the yarn 6 is substantially uniform over along period of time. T

If it is desired, the disc I may be thicker than that required, while the desired thickness of the edge 2 is obtained by beveling such edge.

Often it is desirable to apply intermittently varying amounts of dyeing liquid, lubricating liquid or any other finishing or treating liquid to the yarn or thread. For this purpose the disc I, instead of having a continuous and interrupted circumference, may have one or more portions of the circumference cut away, as is shown in Figure 4, so that the thread or yarn in its passage across the disc, contacts with the periphery of the disc only during a part or parts of the revolution of the disc. As a variation, the yarn or thread may be caused to pass in contact with several discs, a number of which or all of which areso shaped that the thread in passing across these discs, makes contact with one disc at a time only or any number at once. By this means, intermittent effects may be applied to the yarn with respect to periodic changes of color or combination of colors.

Another useful modification of the invention is the use of discs of continuous periphery but of non-circular shape and/or variable thickness.

Thus a circular disc which has a thickness of /8" at one portion of the disc and a thickness of /4" at the other, the thickness changing gradually frommaximum to minimum, may be employed. 'Such a disc is shown in Figure 3. By this means, periodic variation in the amount of dyeing, lubricating liquid or other treating liquid may be effected where the speed of the running of the yarn or thread is uniform. Such means of application may be employed to apply uniform amounts of treating liquid and the like where the passage of the yarn or thread is correspondingly periodic such as in the winding of pirns, cones or other packages. To obtain periodic variable effects elliptical discs, as is shown in Figure 5, may be employed, in which case the peripheral speed of the disc with respect to the point of contact thereof with the yarn or thread varies and thus variable amounts of liquids are applied.

It is to be understood that the foregoing detailed description is given merely by way of il-' lustration, and that many variations may be made therein, without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. Method of applying a liquid to yarns or filaments, which comprises supplying a controlled uniform amount of liquid to a moving surface, passing the yarns or filaments over the surface at an angle to its direction of travel and atsuch a speed as to remove substantially all of the liquid from the surface, and maintaining constant the ratio of the speed of the moving surface and the rate of travel of the yarns whereby a uniform amount of liquid is applied to the yarns.

'2. Method of applying a liquid to yarns or filaments, which comprises supplying a controlled uniform amount of liquid to a moving surface, passing the yarns or filaments over the surface at an angle to its direction of travel and at a speed which is greater than that of the surface and at which substantially all of the liquid is removed from the surface, and'maintaining constant the ratio of the speed of the moving surface and the rate of travel of the yarns whereby a uniform amount of liquid is applied to the yarns.

3. Method of applying a liquid to artificial yarns or filaments, which comprises supplying a controlled uniform amount of liquid to a moving surface, passing the yarns or filaments, continuously with their production, over the surface at an angle to its direction of travel and at a speed which is greater than that of the surface and at which substantially all the liquid is removed from the surface, and maintaining con-. stant the ratio of the speed of the moving surface and the rate of travel of the yarns whereby a uniform amount of liquid is applied to the yar v 4. Method of applying a liquid to yarns or filaments, which comprises supplying a controlled uniform amount of liquid to a moving surface, passing the yarns or filaments over the surface substantially at right angles to its direction of travel and at such a speed as to remove substantially all the liquid from the surface, and maintaining constantthe ratio of the speed of the moving surface and the rate of travel of the yarns whereby a uniform amount of liquid is applied to the yarns.

5. Method of applying a liquid to artificial yarns or filaments, which comprises supplying liquid is removed from the surface, and maintaining constant the ratio of the speed of the moving surface and the rate of travel of the yarns whereby a uniform amount of liquid is applied to the yarns.

WILLIAM 

